In our last article, we introduced the recently finalized New Rule of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), which expands safety and reporting requirements to previously unregulated onshore gas...more
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) recently finalized the second of three gas transmission and gathering-line safety rules, originating out of a nearly 10-year rulemaking....more
On March 27, 2020, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California granted summary judgment on behalf of BakerHostetler clients Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) and Western Energy...more
On April 24, 2018, Colorado state district courts solidified judicial recognition of the Colorado General Assembly’s delegation of primary jurisdiction to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (Commission) over...more
Few areas of the law have seen such substantial evolution in a three-year span as Colorado case law on oil and gas royalty litigation. Since 2015, 13 Colorado state district court opinions have required royalty plaintiffs...more
Wyoming U.S. District Court Declares Bureau of Land Management’s Hydraulic Fracturing Rule Unlawful
On June 21, 2016, United States District Judge Scott Skavdahl granted BakerHostetler’s petition for review of final...more
As oil enters the ninth month of sub-$50 per barrel prices – and natural gas languishes below $3 per MMBtu – the oil and gas industry confronts a challenging time of transition. Layoffs have already happened (or are...more
The largest proposed crude-by-rail (CBR) transloading facility on the West Coast recently survived a major hurdle to its ultimate construction and operation—a lease extension. But with the proposed project enduring nearly...more
This article is the second in a three-part series that began with “Off the Tracks: A Data-Driven Analysis of Crude-by-Rail Liability Factors, Exposure, and Potential Solutions,” which was published on December 19, 2015....more
Proposed crude-by-rail (CBR) projects in California increasingly face opposition lawsuits designed to stall and derail the terminals. The suits often focus on alleged noncompliance with the California Environmental Quality...more
Despite challenging oil prices and a decrease in the volume of crude oil traveling by rail, recent events have renewed the spotlight on crude-by-rail (CBR) transportation. First, two trains derailed in Wisconsin last weekend...more
On September 30, 2015, the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming granted a motion for a preliminary injunction preventing enforcement of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) recently issued hydraulic...more
Recently, industry won a major legal victory regarding liability—or lack thereof—for unintentional and indirect bird deaths under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). Unfortunately, that victory could be short lived,...more
10/1/2015
/ Bird Fatalities ,
Cell Towers ,
Citgo ,
Corporate Liability ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Liability ,
Hunting ,
Industrial Action ,
Logging ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS ,
Transmission Lines ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Wastewater ,
Wind Farm
The nascent Illinois shale oil and gas industry won a preliminary victory in the courtroom last week. The Appellate Court of Illinois for the Fifth District affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction against the Illinois...more
On June 23, a coalition of industry, states, and tribal interests convinced a federal judge to stay the effective date of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) hydraulic fracturing rule. The stay demonstrates the first step...more
DENVER, May 15, 2015 — BakerHostetler today filed a request for preliminary injunction against the final rule the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued to regulate hydraulic fracturing on federal and Indian lands. The motion...more
On May 1, the Department of Transportation—through its operating agencies the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and the Federal Railroad Administration—issued its final crude-by-rail rule. The rule...more
The state of North Dakota moved to intervene yesterday in the state of Wyoming’s challenge to the Bureau of Land Management’s new hydraulic fracturing regulations. North Dakota—like Wyoming—asserts that the hydraulic...more
The Wyoming Attorney General’s Office filed a complaint today in Wyoming federal district court asking the court to set aside recently finalized federal regulations related to hydraulic fracturing on federal and public lands....more
Once again, shale oil and gas production dominated energy headlines in 2014, with a number of key economic, political, and legal developments making news across the country.
Bolstered by technologies like hydraulic...more
3/2/2015
/ Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fracking ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Horizontal Wells ,
Keystone XL Pipeline ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Popular ,
Railroads ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Shale Gas
These are uncertain and stressful times for all involved in the transportation of crude oil by rail. Since February 14, two fiery derailments in West Virginia and Ontario have refocused an unwelcome spotlight on the necessity...more
Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, towns in the western United States grew and thrived around the railroad. In fact, the railroad tracks often became a central geographic feature within towns, birthing the...more
A recent state-law challenge by environmental groups to an aspect of crude-by-rail transportation has teed up the question of federal supremacy over railroad regulation. Because federal law generally preempts state regulation...more
Recently, we covered environmental groups’ increasing array of state-law challenges to midstream and end users of Bakken crude that transport or receive oil by rail. Since then, a California regulator has admitted to...more
Bakken crude producers and midstream transportation companies already experience transportation woes related to inadequate pipeline infrastructure, railroad capacity, tank car supply, rail accidents, and new regulations. But...more
10/7/2014
/ Bakken Shale ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
EarthJustice ,
ForestEthics ,
Kinder Morgan ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Railroads ,
Sierra Club ,
Surface Transportation ,
Train Accidents